"The Phillips recordings of Woody Herman, spanning the mid 1960s, are considered by many to be the greatest of all the Herman Herds with stellar soloists including Sal Nistico, Phil Wilson, Bill Chase and Jake Hanna."
What Big Band Swing Should Be
There are great bands and then there are phenomenal bands. The “Swinging Herd" that Woody Herman led during the mid 1960s is one of those bands. Collectively it possessed remarkable power. Individually, the soloists were imaginatively progressive. In total, it seemed like there was never another band like it.
Herman's soloists capture us like a deer in the headlights. The sheer energy of trumpeter Bill Chase, the tremendous drive of Phil Wilson's trombone and the unbelievable Sal Nistico (especially on a live version of “Apple Honey") is nothing short of breathtaking.
The albums included are “Woody Herman - 1963", Woody Herman: 1964", “Encore", “The Swinging Herman Herd Recorded Live" and the classic “Woody's Big Band Goodies". The liner notes to the original albums by Ralph J. Gleason, Willis Connover, and Leonard Feather convey the raw excitement of this once-in-a-lifetime band.
What Big Band Swing Should Be
There are great bands and then there are phenomenal bands. The “Swinging Herd" that Woody Herman led during the mid 1960s is one of those bands. Collectively it possessed remarkable power. Individually, the soloists were imaginatively progressive. In total, it seemed like there was never another band like it.
Herman's soloists capture us like a deer in the headlights. The sheer energy of trumpeter Bill Chase, the tremendous drive of Phil Wilson's trombone and the unbelievable Sal Nistico (especially on a live version of “Apple Honey") is nothing short of breathtaking.
The albums included are “Woody Herman - 1963", Woody Herman: 1964", “Encore", “The Swinging Herman Herd Recorded Live" and the classic “Woody's Big Band Goodies". The liner notes to the original albums by Ralph J. Gleason, Willis Connover, and Leonard Feather convey the raw excitement of this once-in-a-lifetime band.
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